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Partial sewing of blocks and finishing them at a later time .
I have a quilt pattern where I have to sew five pieces together. The (1) and (2) piece only get sewed half way and then when I sew the (5) piece on then I finish the sewing of (1) and (2). I do not have any clue how to do this without messing up bigtime. Please help, thanks.

Twist,
Ok I found what I am trying to do so I can post it but even these directions seem difficult. I am so afraid of really messing things up.http://quilterscache.com/T/TwistBlock.html
Thanks again for all your help

Monika, this technique is one of those that seems much more difficult than it really is. It is used for those times when the 1st piece is actually longer than the last piece instead of the other way around. The center block on my star sampler quilt (octagon shaped quilt) shown on my page was done this way. Unfortunately you can't really see it that well, but maybe it will give you an idea. Anyway, do just as the directions say to do - put pieces 1 & 2 right sides together and sew only to about the half way point. This does not have to be exact as you will finish the seam later, but don't go more than half way. Then after you get the rest of the pieces sewn on, you will see that the original seam will be positioned right to be sewn the rest of the way. What I would recommend is that you try this on scrap fabrics for the 1st time. I hope this is not more confusing than helpful as it is really hard to explain without being right there with you.

I have finally figured it out and am almost done with the quilt top. It actually worked even though I did have to take a few pieces apart and redo them. They were puckering where the thread did not line up even. I think I got it though, thanks for all the help.

FLYING GEESE -quick and easy method-with these instructions you make four sets of flying geese with five squares. There is no fabric waste with this method. Cut (1) square the size of the finished width (the long side of the flying geese unit) you want the unit to be PLUS 1 1/4". Cut (4) squares the size of the finished height (the short side of the flying geese unit) you want the unit to be PLUS 7/8".

***THE PHOTOS SHOWN show measurements used for the flying geese units in the Southern Stars quilt. Be sure to use the calculations above for other sizes of flying geese.
***For the Southern Stars quilt you will cut one square 4 3/4" and four squares 2 5/8"

Draw diagonal lines on the back of the four small squares.
Lay two of the small squares on opposite corners of the larger block with the drawn lines meeting. The two small squares will overlap a little. Sew 1/4" on either side of the center drawn line (I like to draw those two sewing lines so I know the 1/4" is accurate).
Cut along center cutting line.
Press two small triangles away from larger triangle.
Place the third smaller square and fourth smaller square on the corner of the larger triangles that were formed. Sew 1/4" on either side of the center line.
Cut along the center cutting line and press the smaller triangle away from the larger triangle.
You should end up with four flying geese units that only need the tails cut off with little to no trimming.

Excellent instructions!! I use this method often! There is also a ruler called "Flying Geese X 4" put out by Lazy Girl Designs with directions for finished sizes from 3/4" x 1 1/2" to 3 1/2 X 7" - what size to cut the big square and what size to cut the 4 small squares. Your directions are good for all those in-between sizes - thanks for posting!

This method is fast! I learned this from Deb Tucker, she is a wonderful teacher and is always promoting the KISS principal in her teaching methods! She also has a new flying geese trim down ruler that is sooo new, I don't think she even has it on her website yet, Studio180Design.com

Oh, YES!! That new ruler is called "WING CLIPPER" - I bought it at the Vermont Quilt Festival this past weekend!! You can accurately trim flying geese units in no time! It has the 45 degree markings going both ways - no more having to flip flop a large ruler!! It's my favorite new tool!!

Binding:
I have bound all of my quilts by hand in the past and it is not the pretty ending that I have noticed on other quilts. I was wondering if you wonderful quilters could give me some ideas on the best way to bind my quilts. Usually I machine sew it to the front and pull it to the back and none of the binding is showing on the front of the quilt then hand sew it in place. I am wanting to know how to make it equal on both sides of my quilt.
Thanks so much,
Monika

I use bias binding. I cut it 2 1/2 inches wide I then fold and press it in half. I take the side opposite the folded side and stitch it to the front of the quilt matching the edge of the quilt and using a 1/4 inch seam. I join it to the start using a 45 degree angle so everything lies flat. I then fold it in half over to the back and hand stitch it down. This should keep an equal amount of binding showing on front and back. There are several tutorials on line, that offer photos. Bias binding allows the binding to stretch a bit and makes for easy mitered corners once you learn how to do it.